Mirror in Mirror
by Joanther
Summary: Joey Wheeler ran away from his abusive father in America and wanted to start a new life at Domino, Japan. He never expected that he would meet and become a roommate with someone who look like him named Jounouchi Katsuya.
1. Chapter 1

**Mirror in Mirror**

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Write by _Joanther_

Disclaimer: I do not own Yugioh. Those characters belong to Kazuki Takahashi.

Fandom: Yugioh

Rating: T

Genres: Friendship, Romance

Pairing: Kaiba/Jounouchi

Beta Reader: roseofnoonvale (Thank you so much for helping me) :)

Summary:

_Joey Wheeler ran away from his abusive father in America and wanted to start a new life at Domino, Japan. He never expected that he would meet and become a roommate with someone who look like him named Jounouchi Katsuya._

Warning: AUish part from Joey, OOCness.

A/N: I have this idea for quite long time ago but didn't know how to develop it. It keeps bugging me and screaming for release, so I guess I should write out what I could think of. If you have any ideas you want for this fanfic, please feel free to suggest. I might use it. ;)

-o0o-

**Chapter 1**

Joey always felt strange everytime he looked up at the tall buildings in Domino City. He has seen it from the internet when he was still in Brooklyn, New York, while finding the way to get out of his hellhole of a life. His life sucked. He used to have a normal family like everyone else, with a cute little sister, but everything was ruined when he was ten. His parent divorced, his mother left and took his sister away from him. He never saw her again. His father was the worse. He started drinking after his wife left him, and was kicked out of his job because he was absented too often. Even so, without the job, it did not stop him from drinking the alcohol, but instead he drank more than before. And he didn't just get drunk and pass out; he grew violent with everything around him. Unfortunately, Joey was one of the nearest things around him so he became his punching bag. It kept happening throughout Joey's childhood; the memory made him want to get out of there as soon as possible. He planned on leaving one day when he woke up from being beaten, and couldn't recognize that the passed out, drunk man who was sleeping on the floor with several bottles of beer around him was his father anymore. At that time Joey was only twelve.

Joey went to find a job after that day. He lied to everyone he had worked for, telling him that he was fourteen, the minimum age requirement to work. At first, he worked for a cash-pay job that didn't need his social security number to see his real identification and started saving his money. He also searched for a place that he thought would be safe for him in the future, and his final choice was Domino, Japan. It was far away from here, so if his father wanted to find him, he couldn't find out where was he was. However, the people there spoke a different language, so Joey had to secretly learn Japanese. He didn't want anybody, especially his father, to find out his plan, so he always stayed silent and kept letting himself get beaten by the drunken man. He also played dumb in front of everyone he met, but it made him feel like he was a real idiot sometimes.

But all of it didn't matter anymore. Here he was, after saving enough money and having enough conditions to run away. He hasn't relaxed at all during the flight, and feared that his father was here somewhere, and would force him to come back with him. But maybe he has worrying too much. His father obviously was still passed out in their rotten apartment, too unconscious to know his son had left. Joey wouldn't care for him anymore. He told himself that his father could take care of everything alone and didn't need him, anyway. He just hoped that his father wouldn't call the department for lost children to find him since he was still underage. However, it's not like they would expect him to be living as far away as somewhere like Domino. He just hoped that his life could step in to a new, better page.

And that how he ended up at here, Domino City. A city that he has hoped he would come to one day when he was child. He had secretly done all of the papers to move here legally, even though he had to fake his father's signature many times to complete them all. It didn't matter since he has taken care all of the bills since he was child, and had to fake his father's presence many time because his father never sobered up enough to acknowledge anything. He just cared that he had enough beer to drink and had a real life punching bag to release his stress out on. But now without Joey around, he would lack all of this. Joey didn't want to think what his father would do if he didn't have either of them anymore.

With his age being seventeen, Joey knew he would have to attend school here to continue his education. Before he had told himself that he would study to the best of his ability to find a good job after he graduated so that he never ended up like his father. He received the acceptation of Domino High School, that he would start his new school at the beginning of next week. However the thing he cared the most right now was... a place to live permanently at in Domino.

Joey went to a company that helped people to find houses to rent and after an hour of research, they gave him an address that would be his new house. That was an apartment, and he would share his place with someone, since the price of sharing a room was cheaper than living alone. Joey didn't need too much private space for himself; he just hoped that the person he would be living with was not an ass or annoying.

He had trouble finding the apartment for a few hours, but finally reached his destination. The apartment seemed not too big and new, but it was still better than his rotten apartment at Brooklyn. This apartment was close to Domino High School, as he requested at the company. He smiled and continued searching for the right door. When he found it, he took a deep breath and rang the bell.

Joey only waited a few seconds before he heard a voice spoke in Japanese "I'm coming!" through the door and the door opened. But as he saw the one who appeared behind the door, his eyes went wide in shock. The other's hazel eyes were having the same expression. The two boys stared at each other awhile minute before their mouth could move.

"You..."

The twos spoke in unison, then the word sank in as they continued to stare at each other. Joey was the one who recovered from the shock first and closed his eyes, then opened it slowly and smiled at the look-alike blond.

"Hi, I'm Joey Wheeler. I was told t' come here for a rent house. Are ya Jounouchi Katsuya?" he asked slowly with his new Japanese, since he never practiced how to speak it properly before. He just hoped the look-alike blond would understand him.

"Ah yes... It's me," Jounouchi blinked once in surprise. "I just received a call that I have a new roommate today. So, it's you?"

So he understood what Joey has said. Joey sighed in relief, and kept on smiling. "So... can I go inside and take a look? I'm a bit tired from a lon' flight from America to here."

"Ah uhm... Sure," Jounouchi nodded, still eyeing Joey with uncertainty, but let him get in. The American teen's eyes shined as he looked around the room. This apartment was better than he could expect, and aside from the fact that he had a roommate that look exactly like him, everything seemed to be a good beginning to him.

Joey heard a sound from behind and turned around, he noticed the look-alike blond was handing a cup of water to him with a smile on his face. He took it with small mumble "thanks", hoping the other could hear him. Jounouchi then sat down on the couch in the living room, still smiling. Joey could tell right away that Jounouchi was a good person.

"Thanks—again," Joey said sheepishly as he placed the empty cup on the table and sat down next to Jounouchi. The blonde next to him seemed relax, his hazel eyes showing warmth and welcoming.

"Ah... I think it'll sound stupid... but you noticed too, didn't you? That... we seem look like each other." Jounouchi stuttered. "It's a lie if I say I'm not surprise," Joey nodded at Jounouchi's word. He was thinking the same thing too.

"I think so too... I never thought that someday I would bump into someone who looks exactly like me," Joey admitted. He had feeling that Jounouchi was just like him in looks, but in personality as well.

Jounouchi laughed slightly, his voice lower than Joey. "Hey, time to get to know each other," He said jokingly after the laugh. "Where do you come from and how did you end up at this stinking place?"

"I- came from America-" Joey said, felt more used to Jounouchi's presence. In the past he never made friend with anybody because he always thought of leaving. He went to school and worked all the time, so he never had free time to spend with anyone. Nobody wanted to be friends with him anyway, because they said he looked like a dangerous person. (He accidently overheard them, not that they said it in his face.) Sure he had learned how to fight since where he lived wasn't the safest place but... "Ran away from my pop, ya know."

"Why?" Jounouchi asked automatically, but then stopped. He too felt Joey was similar to him, but it seemed the American teen was more complicated than he thought.

"He was an abusive drunker. Couldn't stand him 'nymore," Joey answered casually.

But then he heard Jounouchi laughing. Curiously, he looked straight at the Japanese blond and saw he was still laughing. "Sorry, I didn't mean to laugh at you... but my father was once a drunkard too. However, he wasn't strong enough to abuse me even if he wanted to. I was used to be his punching-bag when I was a child after my parent divorced and he became a drunkard and a gambler. But when I went to middle school, I became a gangster and could handle my father's attack easily."

Joey's eye widened at Jounouchi. Not just they were having the same look, same personality but same circumstance too? "Then... where is ya father now?" He asked.

"You could say it's a miracle." Jounouchi smiled. "He stopped drinking a few months ago and found a new job. But that job is at Hokkaido, so he had to move away. I didn't move in with him, but stay back here. I have friends and didn't want to leave them, you know. Even so, I have to work two jobs to pay the bills. With us living together now, I think I could relax a little bit."

Joey blinked in awe. Well, at least there were something different between Jounouchi and him, but it seemed like Jounouchi had a better life than him. He wasn't being abused by his father as much as Joey, and now his father stopped drinking and could focus on a job. Jounouchi even had friends, the thing Joey never had once in his life. That made him feels a little bit... jealous.

"You're cool." Joey said quietly. "I wish my pop could be like that."

"I hope so too," Jounouchi told him. "Are you tired? It seems like you don't have too much things with you. I think you should rest, and then we can go out to buy the stuff that you need. Ah... hey, how old are you?"

"I'm seventeen and will be atten' at Domino High School next week. What's school are ya studyin' at?"

"I'm in Domino High School and seventeen too," Jounouchi grinned. "My friends will be surprise when they see you. Can't wait for that." With that he stood up. "Come here. I show you your bedroom."

Joey stood up, and followed Jounouchi. He smiled when he saw the bedroom that he would be staying in here in his new life. Everything seemed perfect; he had a new house, a decent bedroom and a roommate that was clearly a good person. A wonderful start for a person like him. Domino was really the place he was searching for. With that thought, he allowed his body to drop on the bed and closed his eyes, truly relaxed for the first time since he came here.

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TBC


	2. Chapter 2

**Mirror in Mirror**

-o0o-

**Chapter 2**

"Class, we have a new student today," the teacher said loudly to gain everyone's attention. Jounouchi snickered quietly as he glanced at his classmates, wondering how they would react when they saw the new student. He wondered about his friends' reaction since he hid from them about the fact he had a new roommate, also his new friend, and soon to be new classmate. He wanted to see his friends' surprise when they saw the new blond that Jounouchi had known, Joey, would be in his class.

The look-alike Jounouchi walked into class when the teacher announced him. Everybody gasped as they saw the blond, who was already in his new uniform, and wearing it exactly like Jounouchi. He wore a light blue T-shirt with his blue uniform-jacket over it unbuttoned and left wide open. His blond hair was unorganized and had a same style as Jounouchi. He looked like Jounouchi in every way, even the color of his hair and eyes, his grin glued on his face. Jounouchi glanced at his friends, especially Yugi and Yami, and could see they were staring back at him in shock. He blinked and smiled secretly. He could tell Yami and Yugi separately, but if Joey and he were standing together, he doubted anybody could tell them apart.

"The name Joey Wheeler," Joey said out loud when the teacher stopped speaking, still grinning. "I lived in America. I hope I'll be welcome here." As he said, he looked at Jounouchi, who was smiling back at him. His eyes then wandered around the classroom, stopped curiously at the two tri-colors haired teen, and once again at the two long white haired teen. Were they twins? He has expected that everyone would freak out when they saw him, and they really seemed surprise, but not as much as he thought. So was it because of this classroom already had the identical people? He watched slowly and could tell them apart; they weren't alike as much as him and Jounouchi, but still...

Weird...

Joey heard the students whisper to each other about him, but he didn't really pay attention to them. He looked at Jounouchi again and noticed... There was a brunet who was sitting across behind Jounouchi. He was glaring at him. The blue eyes were cold, and he could feel the hate directed toward him. Joey blinked. He didn't know the other, so then why did the other seem like he was meeting his lifetime enemy? He didn't do anything to the brunet, did he?

"Okay, Joey-kun. You should go to your seat," the teacher said pulling Joey's attention back to him. He looked at his teacher, and saw that he was pointing at the empty seat next to Jounouchi and in front of the blue eyes brunet. He gulped when he saw the brunet had a look as if he was planning to strangle him at the moment he came to sit there, but he wouldn't do that in front of everybody... would he? And the brunet had no reason to do that... Maybe the hate he saw in the brunet's eyes was only his imagination...

Joey slowly walked to his seat as he felt as if too many eyes were on him. He was worried, but everything disappeared when he looked at Jounouchi and was greeted by the look-alike blond's warm smile. He remembered that he had told Jounouchi about his worries about going to school, that he feared he couldn't catch up the lessons in class or the different culture between his and everybody else. He knew Japanese and American had different things in many ways, and he didn't know if he would do the right or wrong things, or if he would upset the others around him. Jounouchi had patted his shoulder and promised to him that everything would be alright and Joey shouldn't worry too much. The look-alike blond would be next to him to help him whenever he wanted or needed, and support him. Believing his new and first friend, Joey found himself sitting down at his seat. Jounouchi was sitting next to him, so there was nothing to be scare, right?

"Now this class has a new mutt, great." Joey jolted at the cold voice that was raised behind his back. The voice was loud enough to make him hear, and maybe Jounouchi too, because the blond automatically turned his head to the brunet. "What did you just say, Kaiba?!" Jounouchi growled, but kept his voice down, so that only the brunet and Joey could hear.

The guy named Kaiba smirked as he knew he held Jounouchi's attention. Joey frowned at the brunet, seeing he had looked... softer at Jounouchi, but when he noticed the look Joey gave him, his eyes became icy as he glared at Joey. "You see. We have enough a fool _bonkotsu_ in our class, and now an extra mutt. I wonder since when did this class become a zoo," Kaiba said mockingly.

"_Teme_! How many times have I told you to stop calling me that?!" Jounouchi said half-shouting. Joey glared darkly at Kaiba. Who did he think he was to judge others like that? "I'm no dog, jerk" he added after Jounouchi. He could tell that this bastard was Jounouchi's bully, based on the fact that Jounouchi has said this was not the first time Kaiba called him '_bonkotsu_'. Joey tried to remind the word meaning, didn't it mean... mediocre? He wasn't so sure...

"You're acting like one," Kaiba told Joey calmly. Great, he had sat down for only five minutes, and was already picked by this... this prick. Who did the brunet think he was and why did he act like he had right to insult others, as if he thought he was God. God, he hated people like him.

As Joey was trying to retort, Jounouchi stopped him by grabbed his arm, causing Joey to look at him. Jounouchi then shook his head slightly, telling him silently to drop this subject. Joey sighed, glanced at Kaiba for the last time, and saw the blue eyes were rolling at Jounouchi, but Jounouchi didn't seem to care and completely avoided him. He nodded at his look-alike blond and turned back toward the board, trying to pay attention to the lesson. Well, he came here to study, not to bicker with someone like Kaiba. That prick would destroy his plan of studying if he continued to argue with him, Joey told himself.

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"So, you and Jounouchi have known each other before today?" Joey and Jounouchi nodded at Jounouchi friend's question. It was the lunch time. Right after the bell rang, Joey immediately saw Jounouchi was surrounded by his friends. The two twins revealed they were Jounouchi's friends, and some of them seemed uncertain when they looked at Joey.

"Yes. Joey is my roommate living with me at my apartment. I told you before that I want a roommate to decrease the payment of the bills, remember?" Jounouchi said smiling.

"Then why didn't you tell us before school started?" the taller tri-colors haired asked, his crimson eyes eyed Joey insecurely. The former Pharaoh was hoping that this guy wasn't some of psycho that planning on messing up the world, but the way that this guy had looked exactly like their friend couldn't stop that though. Like Bakura and Malik...

"I wanted to see you guys' reaction when Joey showed up in our class, since I knew that he would be the same class as us." Jounouchi grinned, and took a sip of the milk on his tray. "Anyway, he is my friend, so I hope you guys would see him as your friend too."

"I guess it isn't hard," Yugi smiled at Joey. "I'm Muto Yugi. Please to meet you, Joey."

Joey smiled back at Yugi, and then Yami was the next one to speak up. "I'm known as Muto Yami. You can call me Yami," He said casually, but seemed looser toward Joey.

"I'm Ryou, and this is Bakura," Ryou introduced himself and pointed at his other half. Joey glanced at them curiously. He could tell them apart easily since Ryou seemed to have a soft look on his face and Bakura had looked... evil. He then looked at the other friends of Jounouchi, not expecting that Jounouchi would have this many friends. The sharp haired brunet was the next one who said, "I'm Honda Hiroto. And you really looked like Jounouchi... Even I can't tell you two apart if you don't speak. Fortunately you two have different voices."

Jounouchi grinned and wrapped his arm around Honda's shoulder, then gave the brunet a sly look. "You made me having a new idea for prank, Honda. I think I will use it someday in future."

"On a second thought, I feel regretful. Do I want to know about your prank?" Honda asked with a pout.

Joey laughed slightly while Jounouchi laughed aloud; it seemed like they both understand Jounouchi's idea. Then the American blond teen turned his attention to the only girl in the group. She saw his look and smiled at him. "Hi, I'm Mazaki Anzu. Nice to meet you."

"It's nice to know all of ya," Joey smiled at her and then at all the group. He was eating his lunch, and he had to admit, the Japanese food was kinda different than American's food in many ways, but the croquette was tasty.

"You have lived in America, right? Is it different than here?" Honda asked interestingly, he seemed like he was getting close to Joey really quickly.

"A lot of thin's are different..." Joey admitted. "Like the school... In America we don't stay in one classroom for the whole day. We keep movin' every period. And not everybody has the same schedule. It depends on each person and what their capabilities are and which subject they wan' to join."

"It's... hard to imagine... Then we'd have to move every period? And not having a same schedule with everybody? How so?" Jounouchi asked.

"We make schedule with our counselor; they know and listen and give advice to which's class we want. Normally we make the new schedule in the days before we end the school in summer. The new semester woul' start in every September, ya know."

"Wow, it's really different. In Japan we start a new semester in April, and have to study in the same classroom every period, just the teachers change. We don't have a choice in which class we want, because everybody in the same grade has to study the same schedule. We only move to the Lab if the lessons require using computers or we need to do the experiments in Chemistry and Physics. We also have to move in P.E too, but in all of them the classmates don't change," Yugi said, clearly interested at the new information.

Joey laughed at Yugi and then pointed at his uniform jacket. "And at my school ya didn't have to wear uniforms. But I have to admit, this uniform looks... nice."

"It sounds like my school in England," Ryou said smiling. "But you'll get used to the Japanese school. I did to too. And by the way, in the Japanese school we still have to go to school on Saturday."

"What? Are you kidding me?!" Joey groaned as Ryou snickered. The whole group eyed Joey and Ryou. "Do you two mean that in England and America, you don't have to go school on Saturday?" Honda and Jounouchi asked in unison.

Joey and Ryou nodded.

"It's not fair!" The two cried. "You have two weekend days? How lucky..."

"Actually to American we're seein' Saturday as the weekend and Sunday as the start of new week," Joey rolled his eyes. "And now it means in Japanese that we're stuck in school even on the weekend..."

"Yeah... Technically, you could say we LIVE in school, since we have to go to school at 8 A.M and leave at 4 in the afternoon every day except Sunday," Jounouchi said sarcastically. "And for somebody who joined a club, they could have to wait to leave at a later time for god knows how many hours... I swear, the Japanese schools are hell!"

"Why do I have a feeling that this is not the first time I heard you say that?" Yami smirked jokingly at the Japanese blond.

"Because it's not?" Jounouchi grinned, winking.

The whole group laughed loudly and only stopped when Jounouchi himself had stopped first. Then Yugi smiled at Joey and asked, "If you have to study in different majors at America, then what did you think about the Japanese lessons you have studied earlier? Was it hard...?"

Joey frowned slightly and seemed thoughtfully. After a moment he replied, "I don't really know... I mean, it's kinda hard when I have to listen to everythin' in Japanese since it's not my first language and I still can't speak it properly. Beside, everybody's talkin'... too fast, I sometimes make mistake at what I'm hearin'... I hope it will be better in the future."

"I think your speaking is good," Anzu complimented. "I noticed you did well at the Japanese Literature class."

"I still don't remember all of the kanji..." Joey admitted.

"Don't worry!" Honda patted on Joey's shoulder. "I only just remember all of it last year. I don't guarantee I still remember them all now. And Jounouchi only learned all of it two years ago." This time Jounouchi grinned at Joey when the American blond blinked at him. "The kanji are hard, you know... You only studied it for about four years, and you're this good. I thought we looked like each other, but you're smarter than me. I'm so proud."

Joey blushed slightly at Jounouchi's words. That was when he had a feeling that someone was looking at him. Not just a normal curious look of some random students, but the hatred look he had gained early. He secretly moved his head a little bit, not too much that made people around him notice, but enough to see who was looking at him. And that was when he saw the blue eyes brunet, he remembered his name was Kaiba, was still throwing the hatred look at Joey. Joey swallowed hard and turned the attention back to his new friends, but saw the look-alike blond has noticed his strange behavior.

"What's up, Joey?" Jounouchi asked, tapping his fingers on Joey's shoulder. Joey gave him a weak smile and shook his head. "Nothin', I'm just thinkin'. Do ya remember the guy that picked on us when I just sat in my seat early? The names Kaiba or somethin'..."

"Yeah, of course I remember him. How could I not? Did he do anything to you?" Jounouchi growled darkly when he was reminded of Kaiba. Joey just rolled his eyes before he said, "Not really after he called me 'mutt'. But I don't get it. He seems to hate me too much. I don't remember havin' done anythin' to bother him."

"He hates everyone, not just you, so don't let it get in your nerve," Honda said annoyingly. "I think that guy must be hallucinating. He thinks everyone hates him, so he hates them back too."

"I don't think Kaiba is that bad," Yugi protested weakly. "He's helped us many times before, do you remember?"

"... not really," Honda frowned as Yami snickered.

"I think Kaiba only helps us when he doesn't have any other choice," The crimson eyes teen said. "Sometimes I really doubt that he is really my cousin's reincarnation. I mean, aside from their faces, there have nothing in common."

"Even you said that, Pharaoh," Bakura smirked smugly. "But I doubt that too. Your former priest is lovelier than his reincarnation. At least he seemed to obey you, and this priest doesn't."

"Shut up, Thief. You don't have the right to insult my cousin like that," Yami snarled.

"Make me," The white haired teen challenged.

"Guys, stop!" Anzu interrupted, and the two surprisingly stopped as she said. Joey rolled his eyes at his new friends, and then asked timidly. "Uhm... I don't really understand what ya guys were just talkin' about. If I heard right, I think ya were saying somethin' about a priest, reincarnation stuff, or somethin' about Pharaoh and Thief... But I still don't understand..."

Everybody blinked at him, then glanced at Jounouchi. "You didn't tell him about us?" Yami asked.

"Uhm... I didn't think Joey would believe..." Jounouchi rubbed his hair and laughed nervously. "Besides, I just met him... It would take time, you know?"

"About what?" Joey eyed Jounouchi curiously.

"I don't know where to begin..." Jounouchi answered honestly. "Maybe some other time, or the other guys could tell you." He pointed at his friends, mostly at Yami and Bakura.

"Maybe we really need another time," Yugi sighed as he looked down of his watch. "Lunch time is almost over. And we have to go back to class. We'll discuss this next time, alright?"

"I don't mind. I can tell Joey when we get home," Jounouchi nodded. "If you guys think it's okay."

Joey stared at everybody, wondering what they were trying to tell him. Jounouchi was friendly, he could tell by the last days he had shared the room with the look-alike blond. His friends seemed good too, except for the fact that Bakura was a little bit... creepy. After he was done staring, he noticed he was the last one who still sitting, while the others had stood up and were waiting for him. They were all smiling warmly at Joey.

"Sorry. I spaced out a little bit," He said sheepishly and stood up, but everybody seemed like they didn't care and were still smiling. Then everybody started heading to their classroom, still chatting about some food stuff. When they all reached the familiar class, Jounouchi suddenly stopped.

"Eh... I forgot to go to the restroom," He said quickly and turned away. "Next class is Chono-sensei's lesson. I doubt that witch would let me go if I ask her. See you guys later."

"Hey, wait up. I think I need to go to the restroom too." Joey said and ran after Jounouchi.

"Wow, they really look alike..." Honda said honestly as he stared at the two running away down the hallway. "I can hardly tell them apart when I only see their backs."

"Me too. But I'm glad that Joey doesn't seem like a bad guy. In fact, he seems like another Jounouchi," Yugi smiled at him.

"Right, I had doubted him at first, but he made me feel as if I wanted to trust him." Yami admitted. "I just hope he isn't some kind of threat planning on destroy the world."

"Is it okay if you let Jounouchi tell him about us?" Bakura glared at Yami. "I mean, do you trust him too soon? I think the _bonkotsu_ was right about not telling him, but you suggested it."

"I believe in my sense. And by the way, I think Joey will become our lifetime friend. I don't know why I have that feeling, but still," The former Pharaoh replied boringly at the thief, while the evil white haired teen just frowned, but didn't argue back. Hopefully Joey was not some good actor. The Tomb Robber wouldn't like it if he knew there was someone else who could make the Pharaoh's life like hell as he did before.

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TBC

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**A/N:** In case I still not made you guys understand clearly, I think I should talk more about it. In Japan, students remain staying in one class everyday in school, just the teacher change when the school bell rang. Normally one class would have about 30 – 40 students, and the classmates never change in over a year, unless specific cases. You cannot choose any class but the principal (or his/her assistants) choose it for you, and you don't know which class you'll in until the first day in school of new school year (April). You cannot sit randomly in class because the teachers are the one who decide where you sit. And as I know, Japanese schools don't allow you to bring laptop to school. I didn't remind any scene Kaiba has brought his laptop with him in manga/anime to school, so I won't write Kaiba with laptop in school. :)

My friend is living in Japan now, and he has told me that some high school students he has met told him that their High School still go to school on Saturday. It was few years before and I stuck with that thought, always think Japanese High School have class on Saturday, but when I search the information on Google, it says not all High Schools in Japanese have Saturday class. However in this fanfic, I decided Domino High School has Saturday class.


	3. Chapter 3

**Mirror in Mirror**

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I want to say 'thank you' over again and again to my beta-reader **roseofnoonvale**. I really like you. Thank you very much for helping me.

**Chang Wumei:** I don't think so… I don't like threesomes… But right now I don't think much about those relationships. I enjoy writing about Jounouchi and Joey, of course not in the love-way. xD**  
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-o0o-

**Chapter 3**

Jounouchi placed his hands under the water and started washing them gently. He noticed the look-alike blond was doing the same thing, and with the mirror in front of them, it looked like there were four Jounouchi in the restroom, and it made Jounouchi slightly frightened.

"Hey, Katsuya," Suddenly Joey spoke up, causing Jounouchi turn his head to look at Joey. "What was everybody talkin' about early? Tell me about what?"

Jounouchi blinked; he didn't know what to say. He kept silent for a few seconds, while he was wondering, _'What was Yami thinking? Why did he want to tell Joey about his mystery?'_ The truth was Jounouchi didn't tell Joey about his friends because he didn't truly trust him. I mean, you'd be like this too if you had met many psycho, crazy people that looked like your friends, and turned out they were something abnormal, like spirits. Well, Yami wasn't psycho or crazy, but still a spirit. And Bakura and Malik, well... More than that, one of them had nearly killed Jounouchi with Ra's power (he didn't count his light that almost drowned him), and the other one was Yami's eternity enemy. Bakura had almost destroyed the world twice, almost killed Jounouchi and his friends in his game twice, and even now that he gained a separate body, he and Yami were still bickering all the time. Yeah, he didn't seem to want to destroy the world again, and enjoyed fighting with Yami more than anything else, but who could believe he wouldn't do that again? And after them, now Jounouchi has met someone who looked like him. He just hoped Joey wasn't some psycho guy like the others, but sometime it still made him feel uncomfortable. Joey was like him, not just in physical state, but even their personalities matched. But Jounouchi had to admit, he strangely felt more used to Joey after each passing day.

But even so, should he tell Joey everything?

"It's... complicated." Jounouchi said rolling his eyes. "Do you believe in magic, Joey?"

Joey raised his eyebrows a little bit, has looked thoughtfully. "I... don't know. I guess I would believe it if I saw it with my own eyes, I think..."

Jounouchi snickered at Joey's answer. Joey really was like him. Jounouchi has thought like that before, before he had befriended Yugi. "What do you think about Yami and Yugi, Bakura and Ryou?" Jounouchi asked.

"What do I think? What do ya mean?" Joey blinked curiously. "Ain't they twins? I'd be lyin' if I say I wasn't surprise when I first saw them and more than that, knowin' they were ya friends. But I don't know what I think about them more than that. Yami kept lookin' at me like I am a threat; even though it was softer in the end. Bakura is... freaking me out, I don't know why... Yugi and Ryou seem friendly to me," He smiled.

"Uhm... they're not twins. None of them are twins," Jounouchi turned off the water, and then he suddenly grinned. "But they are not normal friends to each other either."

"What do ya mean?" Joey pouted, turned off his water too, and looked at Jounouchi. The two started walking out of the restroom to head their class, still continuing the conversation.

"It's like this. Yami and Yugi are a couple. Bakura and Ryou too," Jounouchi said nonchalantly. He watched Joey closely to see the look-alike blonde's reaction. If Joey was really like him, he would have no problem with homo-relationship. And... Come to think about it, Jounouchi thought the reason that Bakura doesn't plan to destroy the world again was because of Ryou. It surprised him how love could change a person. That made him think about someone else, and he wondered if that person would change if he loved someone.

"Rea- really?" Joey's eyes went wide. "But... is it... weird? Datin' with someone who looks like themselves..."

"You don't have problems with the fact they are gay, do you," Jounouchi said proudly, putting his hands into his pockets. He noticed Joey already had placed one of his hands into his own pocket too, and another hand was rubbing his hair. "Nah, why should I? I saw many of them in America. It's normal, isn't it?"

"I don't know. To tell the true, my friends are the first homo-couples I have ever seen, but well, I heard someone has said in America that their mind was more open than us in Japan" Jounouchi laughed.

"It seems so," Joey laughed too and the two continued walking. Neither of them noticed a figured was walking on the opposite side, and Jounouchi bumped right in to that person.

"Watch your way when you're walking, _bonkotsu_." He heard Kaiba's voice before he could even react. He looked up and saw the familiar brunet was looking down back at him. His gaze froze on Kaiba's face, mouth opened, but before he could say anything, he felt someone shove him back away, then he saw Joey was standing in front him, between him and Kaiba. "Ya are the one who bumped him on purpose, Kaiba," Joey said half-screaming. "Ya could have easily stepped aside and ya still bumped him. What do ya want?"

Kaiba changed his gaze from Jounouchi to Joey, the blue, cold eyes suddenly turned into something different. Jounouchi could tell. He noticed Kaiba's strange behavior since he first met Joey, as if he hated the American blond without reason. Jounouchi could understand because Kaiba hated Jounouchi and Joey looked like him, so he hated Joey too, but it seemed like Kaiba hated Joey even more than Jounouchi.

"I couldn't understand what you were barking, mutt," Kaiba said uninterestingly to Joey, but it was obvious that Kaiba was insulting the America blond purposely. The two blonds glared at the brunet, and it was Jounouchi turn to speak.

"Watch it, Kaiba. You don't have the right to insult him, or me. I don't know what your problem is, but don't drag us into it. I'll pass." Jounouchi stepped closer to Kaiba, gave him his best look of anger. After a moment, he remembered class was about to start, and he needed to come back to class.

"But _you_ are my problem, _bonkotsu_," Kaiba said calmly, his eyes seemed to be withdrawing the hatred when he looked at Jounouchi, but there was something else that he couldn't read. "And now you have this _dog_ with you."

"Dammit! I'm no dog!" Joey growled, as one hand reached out to grab Kaiba's collar's jacket. Jounouchi quickly stopped him. "You're acting like one, mongrel," Kaiba smirked at Joey, who was furious. "Snap out of it, Joey. We could be late. And Chono-sensei is itchier than this freak if we don't make it in time," Jounouchi told Joey, while he tried to ignore the brunet. Kaiba saw that and tried to talk more, but Jounouchi had grabbed Joey's arm and ran out away from Kaiba.

"Geez... I hate him. Who does he think he is? God?" Joey said pissed off, as he was running with Jounouchi to their class. He was bothering by the brunet and didn't want to run away, but Jounouchi has said about only one person could be worse than Kaiba, and Joey didn't want to deal with them all on his first day of school.

"Kaiba thinks he is rich and can judge everybody," Jounouchi sighed. "Ignore him if you could."

"I don't think it'll work. I mean, he picked on us twice already. Does he usually do that to ya?"

"Not really. We barely talk to each other, but like you said, everytime we speak, it automatically turns into insults. He never acknowledges me and always calls me a second-rate duelist."

"Second-rate duelist? Eh... what is it?" Joey blinked.

Jounouchi gave Joey a strange look. "Don't tell me you never heard about Duel Monster before."

"Uhm... But I really never heard about it before," Joey mumbled. "What is it really?"

"It's... a game." Jounouchi said, and then realized something. "You didn't know about Kaiba too, right? I mean, aside from the fact he is our classmate and a jerk."

"Yeah. And you just said he is rich," The American blond added.

Jounouchi rolled his eyes, "Kaiba is a CEO of a biggest game company in the world." Joey eyes widened when he heard that. "He created Duel Monster duel disk systems and now sells it. That game is popular, so I'm surprise you haven't heard about it before."

"Wow, really? No wonder he acts like he owned everything," Joey said in awe when the two finally reached their classroom. "I have always worked fulltime in order to run away from my father, so I don't have time to play any game, and I don't watch news or TV." He mumbled the last part, but Jounouchi still could hear it. The Japanese blond felt little guilt because he knew that even though Joey and he were having the same problem, his life was brighter than Joey. At least he had stopped his father's violence and Joey hadn't, and his father has stopped drinking but Joey's father hasn't. They walked in to their class without saying anything to each other.

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The last bells rang, informing students it was now the end of the school day. Most students seemed relieving and started packing up their stuff. Joey yawned; finally he had made it up to the end while his head was hurting. He had listened to Japanese too much for a day and had to focus on it to understand everything he heard. Sometimes he didn't translate fast enough or couldn't catch all the words because everybody talked too fast, and he had made mistakes several times too.

But now all of it didn't matter, because the school had ended. He could rest for a night before school would start tomorrow. Or at least, that was what he thinking at that moment.

"Jounouchi-kun! Joey-kun! Do you want to go to my house after school?" Yugi asked cheerfully when the group have finished packing up and started to leave. Ryou has vanished with Bakura when the bell rang, Anzu too. There were only Yugi, Yami, Honda, Jounouchi and Joey still remaining.

"Sorry, Yugi. I have to go to work today. Maybe tomorrow, I don't go to work tomorrow," Jounouchi apologized with regret showing in his face. He hated making his friend sad.

"It's okay." Yugi smiled, knowing his friend's job was important. "How about you, Joey-kun? You would feel bored if you stay home alone when Jounouchi-kun goes to work. Want to come to my house?"

"I want to, but I can't." Joey made a same face as Jounouchi. "I need money too, so I asked Jounouchi if I could work at the same place he did, and the owner has agreed. I start workin' today."

"It's okay," Yugi nodded, not seemed upset. "I understand. I just worry that you'll be sad, but if you're busy working, I figure it's good for you."

"We promise we will go to your house tomorrow." Jounouchi smiled and hugged Yugi slightly. "Thank Yugi. You're the best."

"You should go, or you'll be late." Yugi laughed and patted Jounouchi's back. "See you tomorrow," He said to Jounouchi and Joey.

"We know." Jounouchi and Joey spoke in unison, and turned away. "Bye Yugi. Bye everyone. See you guys tomorrow," and with that, the identical blonds were gone from sight around a corner.

"How was your school today, Joey?" Jounouchi asked when the two were on the way to their work place.

"I... don't know. I feel... like I have a headache. When I was in my old school, I didn't focus on the lessons in class much. But today I have to. Sometime I lost concentration in class and felt like I was listenin'... some kind of magic spells..." Joey answered honestly.

Jounouchi chuckled a little, and then looked at Joey solemnly, "Then, are you feeling okay now? Can you work?"

"I think I can," Joey smiled and nodded. "After all, I just need to stay behind the counter and serve the drink, right?"

Jounouchi didn't respond and just grinned. They were going to head to the cafe shop in Domino downtown, where they would be working. Last week an employee had quit and the owner needed a new employee to take the place of the old one. Joey also needed a job since he said his saving money wasn't enough to last longer than the next few months. Jounouchi had introduced Joey to this job, where Jounouchi was working at too. Luckily, the owner hired Joey right away and wasn't frightened because of Joey's look. Jounouchi worked there as a waiter, and Joey made drinks behind the counter. Joey had experienced this work before, and knew how to make a good drink. He only worked in this cafe shop one day and the owner already liked him, as he liked Jounouchi.

"Ah... Could ya continue your story? The one before Kaiba cut us," Joey asked when he suddenly remembered that one. "If Yami isn't Yugi's brother, then why are they sharin' the same last name? And Ryou too; I notice his last name is Bakura."

"Oh... That..." Jounouchi rolled his eyes, and paused in a minute. "Do you believe in spirits, Joey?"

It was Joey's turn to pause. He blinked, brushed his hair back, and glanced toward the street. "I don't know... I guess I'll believe it if I see one, like the magic thing."

"You saw them." Jounouchi laughed, "Not one, but two."

"What do you mean?"

"Yami and Bakura are spirits," The Japanese blond said. "But not everybody is supposed to know about this."

Joey stopped walking when he heard that, and stared at Jounouchi as if he had turned into an alien. "You... 're serious?"

Jounouchi nodded. "_Yami_ isn't Yami's real name. His real name is Atemu, but he didn't use it anymore after he got a real body. It would be troublesome."

Joey continued staring, mouth wide opened.

"Bakura was named Bakura before, so his name couldn't change. It's not like he wanted it to anyway. We had trouble separating his name and Ryou before, since we were used to calling Ryou 'Bakura', until we ended up agreeing to call them Ryou and Bakura," Jounouchi said using an amusement voice, as his eyes rolled and looked at Joey's face, watching the American blond's reaction.

Joey's stare became blank. Jounouchi noticed it and smiled. "Do you believe what I just said?"

"I... don't know," Joey answered honestly. "But why they are spirits? And how did ya know?"

`"It's a long story," Jounouchi shrugged. "I'll tell you the details when we get home. Just note to yourself that Yami is a spirit of an ancient Egypt Pharaoh that lived 5000 years ago, Bakura is a King Thief. They used to be enemy, but I guess time changes everything, huh? Although I'm not going to guarantee they are friend now... Their pasts are hard, you know..."

Joey nodded, but it felt hard to accept things Jounouchi just told him. Even though he just said that he would believe in spirits if he saw one, he never thought Yami and Bakura would be spirits. He didn't know if he should believe Jounouchi or not, but the Japanese blond gained nothing by lying to him, so he didn't think he lied. But still...

"Anyway, why did ya tell me this?" Joey asked and eyed the look-alike blond. Jounouchi stopped, and seemed like he was thinking about something. He rolled his eyes and bit his lower lip, the sign of being curious Joey had learned from Jounouchi when he was always nearby and close to him. Joey himself did that all the time when he was curious too. He silently waited for Jounouchi, knowing he would tell him after he had stopped thinking. He didn't wait too long when he heard the familiar voice start speaking. "I- I don't know. Yami is the one who suggested it, I just follow him, but I don't really understand why. I think he trusts you. It's not like I don't since I didn't tell you before... I think those things are... uhm... shouldn't need to be telling around, you know..." Jounouchi stuttered, not looked at Joey while he was speaking.

"It's okay," Joey smiled and laughed. "After all, we just met each other. Hell, it's not even been a week yet. But I'm glad ya told me. It's not just Yami that trusts me but ya too, right?" His smile became brighter. "I believe all the things you have told me."

Jounouchi lifted his lips into a smile as he looked at the American blond. He had felt like a heavy stone just dropped off of his chest. Yeah, he trusted Joey. He already did. Because of that, he thought he would no longer be hesitant to tell Joey everything else. He has started liking Joey, a lot.

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TBC


	4. Chapter 4

**Mirror in Mirror **

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**A/N: **_In case if I make you confuse, I use Marik for the hikari and Malik for the yami. **  
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**-o0o-  
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**Chapter 4  
**

Joey tapped his fingers on the counter lazily. Night had just started falling and the customers had almost stopped coming. He silently counted, knowing he could only finish his job and go home after one and a half hours more. After twenty minutes, no more customers came in. Even Jounouchi seemed bored and had left to go to the restroom a few minutes before.

The bell suddenly rang, letting Joey know the door was opening. He immediately stood straight and looked at the new customer who just appeared and was now staring at Joey. It was a kid with black, long, wild hair, with big dark violet eyes. He was wearing expensive thick clothes that seemed a little bit heavy to be wearing on this not yet so cold October night. Joey glanced quickly at the door behind his back, hoping Jounouchi would come back soon to greet the new customer, but he saw no sign of Jounouchi at the back door. He looked at the kid, saw he was grinning at him, and jumped on the seat facing to the counter.

"Jounouchi, you serve the drink today? Where's Shingo?" The kid asked happily, clearly mistaking him with Jounouchi, maybe he was used to coming here. Joey knew the one the kid just asked about. Shingo was the employee that had quit before Joey got the position.

"I'm not Jounouchi, kid. I'm new. Today is the second day I've worked here," Joey grinned. "I'm Joey. You? You know Katsuya?"

The kid seemed surprise, and then blinked slowly. "You... are not Jounouchi? Then where is he?"

"He's in the restroom, he should come back in a moment," Joey smiled. "Do you want somethin' to drink?"

"Oh..." The raven-haired child nodded in realization, then stared at Joey curiously. "Who are you? Why do you look like him? Are you his twin? Or... his _yami_?" He asked. It was Joey's turn to blink. Yami? Was it Yami's name? Or did it mean something else? If he remembered right, _yami_ meant... darkness, didn't it?

"I'm not Katsuya's twin. And the '_yami'_s thing' I don't really understand... What does it mean?"

"Eh... Then what are you to Jounouchi? You know him, right? You even call him by his first name..." The kid spoke in low tone and eyed Joey carefully. "You're not like Yami, Bakura or Malik, are you?"

"You know about them too?" Joey asked in surprise. He knew Yami and Bakura, but this was the first time he heard about this person named Malik. He guessed that the Malik guy was like Bakura and Yami; a spirit.

"You too? Then that's what you are?"

"Ah... no. Katsuya just told me about it earlier, but he still hasn't finished it yet. He promised me he'll tell me when we get home," Joey answered honestly. Who was this kid really?

"You and Jounouchi are living together?" The dark-violet eyes went wide. "Who are you really?"

"I- I'm his roommate?" the American blond answered uncertainly. He didn't know what the kid wanted to know about him. The kid seemed demanding and somewhat familiar, but Joey didn't remember when he had met someone like him before.

"That's not what I mean," the kid pouted. "I mean, what are you to Jounouchi? You aren't his lover, are you?"

"I am WHAT?!" Joey nearly screamed. "Where did you have that idea?"

"Well, Yami and Yugi are a couple. Bakura and Ryou are too. I'm not sure about Malik and Marik. And now someone that looks like Jounouchi appeared what do you think I would think?" The kid frowned; his eyes stared straight at Joey's eyes.

"I-" Joey was speechless, for a moment didn't know how to respond. Luckily, the back door opened at that time and Jounouchi appeared behind it. "I heard your scream. What's wrong, Joey?" Jounouchi asked hurryingly and walked to the counter. Then he noticed the child was sitting on the counter seat. "Mokuba! I didn't know you'd come," He greeted the kid.

"Jounouchi," Mokuba turned to the Japanese blond, seeming happier with his presence. "I was talking with Joey. He said you and him are living together, is that right?"

"Yeah, I want to share my apartment to save money, so I need a roommate and he is my roommate." Jounouchi nodded. "Are you surprise because of his appearance?"

"Uh-hum," The kid hummed. "But you didn't seem surprise about his appearance? I mean, he looks like you. Is he your _yami_?"

"No, he's just a normal human. And of course I was surprise the first time I saw him. Joey was too. But we are in good terms now," Jounouchi said grinning at Joey, making the American blond smile back.

"So, you are just a normal human?" Mokuba looked at Joey. He had to admit it was weird when someone asked him if he was a normal human or not. But he had learned about Jounouchi early, and as Jounouchi said magic and spirits were real, so he wasn't surprise too much. But what did the kid have to do with those things? Was he involved in it too?

"I- think so?" Joey answered slowly. After hearing the kid asked, he started to doubt if he was a human or not. It sounded funny...

Mokuba laughed, "Could you make me a cup of hot chocolate? I think I'm thirsty." Joey nodded and started to make the drink. Mokuba then turned to Jounouchi, while the Japanese blond was just sitting down on the seat next to Mokuba. "What's brought you here, kid? I think it's seven in the evening. Your brother let you go out at this time?"

"I have Isono with me," Mokuba said smiling. "And nii-sama comes back from KaibaCorp at eight. I was planning to go to the KaibaCorp when he leaves to go home with him. But I still have an hour, so I decided to come here. It's been a long time since the last time I saw you."

"You just came here not too long ago," Jounouchi grinned. "And the last time I remember meeting you is just about six days ago. It's not that long."

"For you, it's not. But it is to me. I mean, I only have you, Yugi's gang as my friends, but I like you the most of all of them. I always look forward to seeing you," Mokuba answered honestly. Joey finished making the drink and handed it to the kid. He could tell the kid was lonely, but didn't know why. The kid seemed nice, so he must have many friends in Joey's opinion. Mokuba caught his drink, and thanked Joey softly.

"I'm sorry I didn't know," Jounouchi apologized. "You can come here everyday if you want. I just hope your brother isn't against it."

"He isn't. Don't worry," Mokuba laughed. "And the drink is delicious, Joey." He took a sip and smiled at Joey. Joey smiled back.

"Thanks, kid. I love to hear that." Joey said. He still didn't understand why a nice, friendly kid like him didn't have anyone else for a friend. Or was he some sort of spirit too? And he also had a brother.

They were chatting about some trivial things for an hour. Mokuba had been surprise as Jounouchi when he heard Joey didn't know about Duel Monster. But the kid didn't get into that game much and he said he didn't play it either. After that, they talked about other things, like school life, and Joey told Mokuba about himself, how he has planned to escape from his father in America. The kid seemed in awe, and he quickly became friendlier to Joey. But when Joey was about to ask him why didn't he have any friend other than Jounouchi and Yugi's group, the kid had realized it was time to go to pick up his brother. He left after promising the two blonds that he would come back tomorrow.

"Man, he's cute," Joey said after Mokuba had left and Jounouchi and he started to clean up the shop, knowing it would close in about half an hour and he was sure no customer would come at this time anymore. "I missed the chance to ask why he didn't have any friends. Is he a spirit like Yami and Bakura?"

"No. He's a normal person, just happened to be dragged in it all the time. Like me and Honda and Anzu, and somebody else," Jounouchi laughed.

"There seem like a lot of people knew about it," Joey rolled his eyes. "I think magic supposed to be mystery and even if it's real, nobody should know about it. I surprise to hear there are more people who knew about it, you know... As if it's just a normal thin'."

"There are just some certain people who knew about it and then their close friends knew it too," Jounouchi continued laughing as he was cleaning the tables. "Mokuba knew about it since his brother was involved deeply. I don't know if Mokuba has any connect with those things like his brother or not."

"Oh. Then his brother is a spirit? Who is he? Do I know him? Is he the Malik guy Mokuba mentioned early?"

"No. Malik is another spirit. He's different than Yami and Bakura. Yami and Bakura are the spirits from 5000 years ago and were shielded in Millennium Items until Yugi and Ryou discovered them. But Malik is a spirit created by his host's hatred. In another word, you could say he is another personality of his host, but he is crueler, darker and... crazier. If Yugi and Ryou are friendly, Malik's host isn't, and he is the worst. Still, I'm glad they changed. I like them now, but I barely see them. They're living in Egypt," Jounouchi slowly explained. "Still, I don't know how I forgave them after everything they have done to me and my friends. Malik had burned me by Ra's power. And since Ra is a Sun God, being burned by him is equal death. I don't know how I survived that." The blond duelist shrugged. "His host has controlled my mind once and tried drowned me under Domino's ocean. I thought I would die that time."

Joey froze; he didn't expect that Jounouchi's story would be that... unreal. And it sounded dangerous too. If he just looked at Jounouchi, he couldn't tell the identical guy has gone through those experiences. But he said he believed in him, and Jounouchi wouldn't lie to him. He trusted Jounouchi, so those stories must be real.

"And Mokuba's brother... Yeah, you met him at school today. I think that jerk is the main reason Mokuba doesn't have any friend other than us. I guess he trusts us enough to be close to his brother," Jounouchi continued. Joey's eyes widened. That jerk...? Did Jounouchi mean... Kaiba?

Come to think about it. Mokuba did say his brother was working at KaibaCorp.

And think about it again. He had thought Mokuba looked like someone. Now that he was certain, he really did have many things common with his brother.

"Kaiba?" Joey asked again to be certain. Jounouchi nodded and stood up, seemed satisfy with his cleaning. "That guy knew about those magic things too? He doesn't seem likely..."

"Well, it took time to convince him magic is real, you know," Jounouchi said and went to the back door. Joey followed. They needed to change before go home. "He has a big part in it. His past life was Yami's cousin, and he was a High Priest. I heard Yami say that when Yami's soul was shielded with Bakura, Kaiba's past life became the next Pharaoh. Ironically, his past life was very faithful to Yami, and Kaiba isn't. Kaiba always wants to beat Yami in Duel Monster but has had no success yet. He never listens to Yami unless he has no other choice."

"I can see that," Joey agreed. "About the part he doesn't listen to Yami. But I can't imagine that he's willin' to listen to others, even his past life or not."

"Me either," Jounouchi snickered. "Even Yami said so. Kaiba never listens to anybody but his brother. I doubt other than Mokuba there is no one else that could make Kaiba smile or show his real emotion." The Japanese's voice suddenly went lower with the chuckle died down. "He's nice to Mokuba and no one else. Sometime they really made me feel envious."

"Why?" Joey asked. He was surprise to see Jounouchi complimented Kaiba, especially considering how much of an opposite they were, and how Kaiba has treated him. But he was surprise about knowing Kaiba was nice with his brother too, since he seemed to hate humans too much.

"Those brothers are together," Jounouchi sighed, and started changing his clothes. "I have a sister, but my mom took her away from me several years ago when my parents divorced. I only saw her once last year when I found money for her eyes operation. To be honest, I don't know where she is living right now. I wish I could be with her like Kaiba and his brother."

Joey paused, staring at Jounouchi like he was crazy, "I... I have a sister too. And my _ma_ took her from me when my parents divorced. Until lately, I haven't heard anythin' about her. I never met her again, but I wish I could." His eyes dropped down to the floor as he whispered. In a moment he felt the strong need to hug the other blond.

Joey gasped slightly when he felt a pair of thin arms starting to wrap around his back. Jounouchi was hugging him, his head buried in Joey's shoulder. "I'm sorry," He heard the Japanese blond mumbled. "I'm really selfish, aren't I? At least I met my sister once but you..."

Joey smiled, hugging Jounouchi back. "I'm not trying to pity you or anything like that," Jounouchi continued before Joey could say anything. "It's just... I know that feeling... Unable to know or meet your sister, didn't know how her life is going on... My sister was blind before I met her again. You know..."

The American blond said nothing but tightened his arms around Jounouchi. He didn't want to think about whether or not his sister was having any problem while he was unable to help. But when Jounouchi hugged him, he felt more calm and grew hopeful that he would able to meet her someday again in future. He didn't know why, but as he was still in Jounouchi's arms, he had a strong feeling that this hope would become true.

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Kaiba had a huge headache when he finished his work, but as he saw his brother greet him at the office door and announced he was here to pick him up to go home, he smiled, then felt the headache fading a little bit. He stood up to hug his brother, and then walked out the office with the kid, heading home. When the two had sat in the limo they started talking.

"What were you doing, Mokuba?" Kaiba asked gently. "I can go home by myself, but you still came to pick up me. Have you done all of your homework?"

"I have done all of it at school," Mokuba answered excited. "Before I came here, I visited the café shop where Jounouchi was working, and you know what? I met a guy who looks exactly like Jounouchi there."

Kaiba's eyebrows twisted. If there was anything he didn't want to hear about at that moment, it would be about the clone-Jounouchi. Where did that guy come from, and why did he look exactly like Jounouchi? More than that, that guy seemed pretty close to Jounouchi, as if they knew each other before. He didn't want to know if his secret love had a _yami_ or more terrible, a boyfriend.

Yeah, right. Kaiba was secretly having a crush on Jounouchi, or even deeper feelings than that. That was the reason he picked on Joey several times today. However, when he saw the way Jounouchi and Joey were standing together to stand up against him, he just became more piss off. Joey had made no mistake when he thought Kaiba wanted to strangle him the first time they met each other. Kaiba thought he would seriously, not hesitantly kill Joey if he heard they were really an item, even if that guy had looked like his love.

"And what is that guy? Don't tell me he's _bonkotsu's yami_," He said uninterestingly but knew fully that his brother had known about his feeling for Jounouchi. Kaiba didn't tell Mokuba about that, but the younger Kaiba was intelligent enough to see it and had asked Kaiba to confirm. Of course he didn't let Kaiba deny it, and Kaiba stopped that idea when he learned that his brother could be quiet annoying if he needed to be. And Kaiba didn't like the idea of lying to his brother, at least Mokuba promised to not go telling anyone, and Kaiba trusted him.

"Ah, no. At least that's what he said. Joey told me he came from America-" Mokuba said and stopped hesitatingly. "- running away from his abusive alcoholic father in America. He didn't expect he would meet Jounouchi and they were surprise to see each other at first. They are living together right now."

Kaiba was seeing red as he heard his brother say that Jounouchi and Joey were living together. He knew about Jounouchi's condition, and heard that Jounouchi had wanted to share his apartment to decrease the bill. But living with Joey, who looked like himself? Kaiba also knew about Yami and Yugi's relationship along with Bakura and Ryou's and they all started with living together. He knew far to well that his _bonkotsu_ never had anyone before, but when his friends were all in relationship and they were with someone who looked like themselves, he was afraid that Jounouchi would want to be with Joey too. They were really getting along, while Kaiba, in Jounouchi's eyes, was a bad guy. He didn't know how to court the blond, especially when a new rival appeared.

"Nii-sama?" Mokuba blink in surprise when he didn't hear his brother say anything. He looked at Kaiba and immediately understood what the CEO was thinking. "Are... are you jealous of Joey?"

Kaiba remained silent but glared at his brother. Mokuba said nothing more and quickly turned his head to the window. Realizing what he just did, Kaiba sighed and placed his hand on the raven-haired kid's shoulder, with full meaning of apology. Mokuba then slowly turned back to look at him, his eyes sparkling in the dark. "Nii-sama?"

"I'm sorry," the brunet said quietly, but enough to make his brother smile. Mokuba's smile widened, as if he already forgot about how his brother made him sad just a minute ago. Kaiba had to smile too. "I don't think you should worry about Joey too much since he isn't Jounouchi's _yami_. I talked with them earlier, and I don't think they are in any kind of relationship other than friends," Mokuba continued his early conversation. "But if you don't want to lose Jounouchi to Joey, why don't you start to act right now?"

Kaiba stared at his brother bluntly.

"You like Jounouchi, right? But if you keep silent, Jounouchi will never notice or fall for you back. And even if there is no Joey, he might fall in love with someone else. You can't blame him if you are not making any move," Mokuba stated the matter-of-factly, making the elder Kaiba freeze. He... hadn't ever thought of that, but it was true. Even if Joey didn't appear, there was no guarantee Jounouchi wouldn't fall for somebody else.

"Then what should I do?" Kaiba asked softly, not knowing that his own voice sounded distance. He was trying to think about his behavior to Jounouchi, but couldn't think about any bright idea. After all Jounouchi was the first and only one he had ever fell for until now, and aside from picking on the blond to making him notice him, Kaiba didn't have any other idea. However, he was smart enough to know his insults only made Jounouchi hate him more.

Mokuba kept silent for a moment, and then started to speak slowly. "I'm... not sure. How about you join in Yugi's group and start acting nice with Jounouchi instead of calling him names? And..." The kid's eyes sparked again. "... Your birthday is coming. How about throwing a party and inviting Jounouchi and his friends over? You might have a chance to be alone with Jounouchi if you know how to separate him from his friends," he suggested.

"It's a good idea," Kaiba nodded and smiled at the thought of being alone with Jounouchi in his house. If he wanted it to happen he had to invite the gang to his house, but maybe it was worth it. He would think about this idea and plan it more properly.

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TBC


	5. Chapter 5

**Mirror in Mirror**

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**-o0o-**

**Chapter 5**

"What's this?"

Eight pairs of eyes stared directly at Kaiba when he dropped each letter in front of their face. He kept his face blank, eyes focusing only on Yami and Yugi, trying to make himself seem as natural as possible.

"Those are the invitations, Mutou," Kaiba answered dryly. Everytime he used 'Mutou' to talk with Yugi and Yami, he meant both of them. "My birthday is this weekend, and Mokuba asked me to throw a party. You guys are invited," he said monotone.

Immediately, many mouths in the group gasped. Yami and Yugi looked at each other to make sure they didn't hear wrong. Honda and Anzu did the same, and then looked at the others suspiciously. Ryou looked at Bakura, while the thief stared directly at Kaiba like he was crazy. Only Joey couldn't understand why everyone reacted that way. He looked at Jounouchi, and saw that the identical blond was reading the invitation. Joey was the only one in the group who didn't have an invitation.

"You invited us to your house?!" Jounouchi frowned as he finished reading the letter, and then looked up at the brunet. Kaiba nodded and said, keeping his voice uninterested, "It's Mokuba who invited you guys. I just simply can't refuse him."

"Figured," Jounouchi shrugged sarcastically, before his eyes dropped on Joey. "Why he doesn't have any invitation?" he asked.

Kaiba glanced at Joey hatefully and looked back at Jounouchi, arms crossed. "I don't want a dog in my house."

"What?!" Joey shouted and stood up. "I'm not a dog, bastard!"

"In my eyes, you are," Kaiba replied coldly; he didn't bother to look at Joey when he said this. He saw Jounouchi snort and stare at him disbelievingly. He then shoved the invitation in his hand to Kaiba's chest. "Then, I guess you don't want a _bonkotsu_ in your house either. Well, to make you satisfied, I won't go too. Happy?!"

Kaiba's eyes widened for a second. He didn't expect this. He just didn't want Joey to come, so he didn't invite him. But he forgot that Jounouchi might react this way, since Jounouchi and Joey had looked the same. However, he still could tell them apart from afar, even without talking to any of them. That was why he could drop the invitation correctly in front of Jounouchi and not Joey earlier. But that was not the problem right now. He made the whole party just to have the excuse to get Jounouchi to go to his house, and now just because of this stupid mutt he refused to go. But Kaiba couldn't just take it back. It would be too obvious.

Luckily, before Kaiba could think of something, he heard Yugi speak up timidly. "Uhm Kaiba-kun… Jounouchi-kun and Joey-kun are my friends. I don't want to go without them. If… if you don't want them come, I think I will not come either."

"If my _aibou_ won't go, then I won't either," Yami added sharply.

Normally Kaiba would be pissed if Yami and Yugi threatened him like this, but now he just appreciated them. He faked a glare and growled, trying to sound angry. "Fine! Then the dog—I mean, Wheeler, is invited to come to my party too."

"Thank you, Kaiba-kun," Yugi smiled brightly, while Jounouchi grinned at Joey and winked. Joey smiled nervously. He didn't know if going to Kaiba's house because of his friends' threat was a good idea or not…

Kaiba snorted quietly as the scene; Jounouchi and Joey were too close to each other. He was about to turn away, but Yugi called him back. "Kaiba-kun! Would you like to go to lunch with us today?" The small teen had asked Kaiba that almost every day, and every time Kaiba gave him the same answer, 'no'. But now… Kaiba thought for a moment. Mokuba had told him that he should act friendly with Jounouchi, and to make it work, he had to act friendly around all of Jounouchi's friends too.

"I wouldn't mind," was Kaiba's answer this time, before he walked back to his own seat.

…

Lunch time came, and Joey found himself at the table the group had sat at yesterday. The different thing was this time the group had added one more person, and it was Kaiba. The brunet sat next to Jounouchi on the right, while Joey sat next to Jounouchi on the left. Kaiba was sitting at the right edge, so no one sat next to him on his right side.

Joey looked at Jounouchi worriedly. Since everybody had taken out their food, he saw Jounouchi still sitting still, eyes staring blankly in front of him.

"Hey, Katsuya!" Joey called to Jounouchi, immediately he felt a heated glare shot at him, but he didn't look up to see just who did it. "Where is your lunch?"

Jounouchi blinked and looked back at him, and then laughed sheepishly, "I forgot it at home again. It happened sometime, you know."

"So you don't have anything to eat now?" Joey's eyes widened. "Why didn't you tell me? I could have grabbed it for you too. Was it in the yellow box in the kitchen this morning?" He looked down at his own lunch. "Well, my lunch isn't too much, but I guess we could share."

Jounouchi looked at Joey's lunch box. "No, thank. You hardly feel full with your lunch, I don't want to take any from you. It's my fault that I forgot it, so I deserve to be hungry. This is not the first time. I'm used to it."

"You could share with us, Jounouchi-kun," Yugi suggested. Jounouchi looked up at his best friend, seeing not just only Yugi but all of his friends were looking at him. "Eh, thank you guys. But I can handle some hours without lunch. Don't worry." He knew his friends' lunch was not much and didn't want to take any of their food. Everytime he forgot his lunch, his friends always offered their lunch to him but Jounouchi always refused.

And he blinked in curious surprise when a large box of food was shoved in front of him. He looked up to his right, and saw Kaiba not looking directly at him as he spoke, "You could eat some of my lunch. After all, my lunch is huge. I couldn't eat it all alone."

Jounouchi didn't response, but looked down at the large box in front of him. Kaiba's lunch was far different than any of his friends' lunch. It was three times bigger than his normal lunch, with many rice balls, sushi, dried vegetables, fried eggs and grilled meats. It even had two small transparent boxes of sandwiches and fruits inside the large box. If it was other people, Jounouchi would believe them when they said they couldn't eat it all alone.

But it was Kaiba. And Jounouchi had seen the brunet eat lunch sometimes. If people saw the way Jounouchi eating and told him that he eats too much, it was nothing comparing to Kaiba. Kaiba always ate ALL of his lunch, even though his lunch was always as huge as this one. He made Jounouchi envious many times because he could eat that much very quickly, but still be polite, and he still had the form of a perfect body.

Not to mention, many people thought Kaiba usually starved himself just because he looked slender.

"Is it okay?" Jounouchi asked after moment thinking, "I mean, I know you could eat all of it alone." He looked at Kaiba sheepishly.

"I don't feel like eating so much today, so if you don't eat it, I'm just gonna throw it away anyway," Kaiba replied boringly. Jounouchi then nodded and started to pick up one rice balls in the box. As he took a bite, he saw Kaiba was doing the same thing.

And the rice balls were extremely delicious. Well, after all, it was Kaiba's food.

As Jounouchi was eating, his friends started talking during lunch. He saw Joey putting some letters on the table when the American blond was biting his sandwiches. Anzu was the first one who asked, "What's that, Joey?"

"I don't know…" Joey answered curiously, eyes on those letters. "I saw them in my locker this morning but didn't read it. I just remembered it now." As he said that, he unfolded one letter and read it, then frowned. "I'm not sure if I read it right, but this letter said the sender wants to date me."

"What?!" Honda and Anzu shouted in surprise, while Jounouchi looked at Joey, but his hand grabbed another rice balls from the box. "Let me see!" Honda held his hand out. Joey handed him the letter, then unfolded another one. "I think this one has the same idea too," he said after he read it quickly and gave it to Anzu.

"You only transferred one day and somebody already wants to date you? Lucky huh?" Bakura smirked, mocking.

"I don't know why…" Joey answered honestly. "I never received one in my old high school."

"I think those girls are the one who were admiring Jounouchi," Anzu said and put the letter on the table. "Remember Jounouchi had always received many love letters every day before? But since Jounouchi turned them all down and Joey looks like Jounouchi, they think they might have a chance with Joey."

"Really," Jounouchi frowned deeply. "They want to date me just because I'm a famous duelist and since Yugi has Yami, they can't have any chance with him. When I was still anonymous, I hardly received anything. Remember when Otogi first transferred here? They all looked down on me. And now when they know they can't date me too, they turned to Joey?"

Joey sighed and dropped all the letters on the table; he didn't bother to read the unfolded ones anymore. He didn't understand girls. When he was in America, those girls always stayed away from him because of some rumors that he was a gangster. Strangely, Joey didn't mind not having any girls like him. Right now, when he knew the girls in this school wanted to date him because he looked like Jounouchi, he got a feeling that he could never like any girls anymore.

Joey jolted. Did that make him sound gay?

"You don't seem interesting in them?" Honda said, putting the letter in his hand on the table. "Man, if any of those girls wanted to date me, I'd immediately agree."

"And that's why I refused to let you get close to my sister," Jounouchi glared at Honda, and the brunet snickered. "I'm just kidding."

"Like I believe you," Jounouchi frowned and mumbled, but his voice sank in when Anzu turned to Joey. "Eh, Joey. Is it possible that you might be gay?" she asked, smiling.

"Eh?" Joey cocked his head and looked at Anzu, but didn't answer the question from her.

"Now you said that, I just noticed…" Honda said and looked at Yami, then Yugi and Ryou and Bakura. "We have four guys in our group that are gay. I'm definitely straight and Anzu too. I'm not sure about Jounouchi, Joey or Kaiba." He averted his eyes from each of them.

Kaiba, who stayed silent for the rest of the lunch eating his food, was still focused on the conversation. He was jealous knowing Jounouchi had had many fangirls, and then felt relief when Jounouchi didn't like any of them. He glared at Honda when he asked that question, but didn't say anything particular. Jounouchi was eating Kaiba's food, but he didn't eat too much. As Honda asked him a question, he frowned, "Hey, what do you mean you are not sure about me?!"

"Well, I saw you liked girls before," Honda replied. "But now you refuse going out with any girls that want to date you, so I doubt that you are still straight. Joey, we just knew him since yesterday, I can't say anything. Have you ever had girlfriend before, Joey?" He turned to Joey.

"No… For some reasons they think I'm a gangster, so nobody wanted to get close to me. I think it might have been because of the scars and the injuries I received from my father back then." Joey shrugged while everybody gasped, except Jounouchi and Kaiba. "Besides, I was longing to leave that place, so I didn't want to be attached with anybody."

"Why didn't you… tell the police your father was abusing you?" Jounouchi hesitated a little bit, but still asked. "Isn't America the place where the government always protects the children? At least that was what I have always heard."

"I don't have any other family members aside from my dad, and my _ma_ had taken my sister away. If I told the police, my dad would be arrested for sure and I will be brought into a foster home. That place doesn't have any freedom, and it's no different than a jail." The American blond said, and paused. "No, to be honest, I didn't think about that when I was child, but it would still come out with a bad result anyway."

The group was silent. No one, other than Jounouchi, had known this much about Joey's situation, but this was the first time Jounouchi knew anything further about it. He didn't know what the others were thinking, but Jounouchi understood. He knew what that felt like, when you were hopeless in your own family and you could not do anything other than try to free yourself out of that hellhole. You couldn't just wait for some help but do it yourself. And each person had their own way to escape. Jounouchi joined the gang, trained himself hard so he could deal with his father's punches, and he knew he was very lucky when his father could snap out of the alcohol, like a miracle. Jounouchi had to feel awe when he realized there was not just only one, but many miracles that had come to him, especially after he met Yugi.

But Joey was a different story. He didn't have a friend. He hadn't wanted a friend when he was trying to move away, and that was what Joey had chosen. Joey had to work hard to get away from his father, and bitterly, his father didn't seem to have any hope of waking up from the liquid poison. A father, who had scared his son, caused his son to think about a way to run away when he was just a twelve-year-old child. A father that Joey didn't know how he was doing right now, if he was still drowning in alcohol and didn't even realize that his son would no longer be there next to him.

Joey exchanged looks quickly with Jounouchi and sighed. What was this all about? When did the conversation change and stab directly at his past? He didn't want to think about it right now. He didn't want to think about what his father was doing right now, because it only caused him a deep pain he was trying to avoid…

… That he was a terrible son who abandoned his father.

In Joey's mind when he was still in America, his father was nothing that he could recognize but a monster. And now he felt regretful, wanting to go back to see what his father was doing.

"I'm scared…" Joey mumbled, didn't realize that his voice was loud enough for the whole group to hear. "I don't know if this is a good move or not, running away from my father. I have tried to avoid this, to not think about him… but I couldn't. Everytime I don't have anything to do, I will think about him, wondering what he is doing at that moment. I… I somehow hope that he could snap out of his drunken state and search for me and apologize… But I'm afraid that he is angry too, and would suddenly appear at my new house one day in future, wants to drag me back to punish me harder…"

He gasped slightly when he felt a pair of arms wrapped firmly around his neck, and the embrace was familiar. Joey looked up at the blond who was holding him tightly; hesitating a little bit before he wrapped his arms back around Jounouchi.

And he was appreciating that Jounouchi or his other friends didn't say anything, because no word was the most comfortable way to make him calm down at that moment.

Kaiba kept his face emotionless and continued eating his food. After knowing faintly about Joey's state, he couldn't bring himself to feel jealous when he saw Jounouchi was hugging the American blond. He didn't feel as if he hated Joey anymore. He was even surprised when he found out that he was thinking that he wanted to help the American blond if he could.

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TBC


End file.
